Micah 4:1-3

Micah 4:1-3 

English Standard Version 

  One of the podcasts I'm hooked on is called Proof, by America's Test Kitchen.  They're always finding interesting food-related stories, and the most recent episode is all about a woman who dedicated her life to researching historical recipes.  They were talking about her love of source documents -- she always went to the source.  

  In today's modern age, we don't dig into source documents very often -- we don't look to authoritative sources.  As a kid, I remember going to the Cincinnati library to research my senior English essay.  We had to dig through obscure books to find research on the books we were researching.  It was hard work, but it connected me with the experts.  Now, we can go to Wikipedia, and we easily trust what we find there.  There are usually links to source documents, but we're often just relying on the idea that someone else did their homework.  It's why tweets can go viral even when they're not factually correct -- we have lost confidence in authority figures, and so everyone is an authority, and we trust anything and everything.

  Scripture reminds us that there is an ultimate authority figure.  As Christians, we bow the knee before the throne of grace, trusting in the God who will judge between peoples, who will beat swords into plowshares, who shall send forth God's word.  It is the Lord's house that will be established, and it is the Lord who will draw people from every nation into it.  We are subject to God's authority, and we can certainly rejoice that God comes to save and deliver us from sin and evil, but we must always remember that God, and God alone, has ultimate authority, and we should continually go back to Scripture, to the source documents, when we're looking for guidance and wisdom on how to live.

  

1 Thessalonians 5:23-28

1 Thessalonians 5:23-28 

English Standard Version 

  What's amazing is that this is exactly how it will work -- your spirit and soul (all of you!) will be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, because he makes you blameless!  His blood, shed on the cross in love for humanity, makes you blameless, and because he is faithful to his promises, we know that we can rely upon these promises!  

  The Gospel is as straightforward and as beautiful as that.  The grace of the Lord be with you, and as you go into the day, hold your head high, because the love of God sustains you and enables a future filled with hope.  Thanks be to God!

1 Thessalonians 5:12-22

1 Thessalonians 5:12-22

English Standard Version 

  There's probably some wisdom in spending a month with every single verse in here, praying for the wisdom to understand how to live it more fully, trying to courageously follow just that verse for a month, then moving on to the next.  You could spend a year in these 11 verses, then likely start all over, with still more ground to cover.  

  The Bible is like that -- deeper than we can imagine, a bottomless ocean that is always challenging yet comforting us at the same time.  If we don't read the Bible and get uncomfortable at times, we need to read a little closer -- Scripture is always pushing us out of our comfort zone.  Liberals, conservatives, those caught in the middle -- there's something here to challenge us all.  I once heard someone say that when you find out that Jesus dislikes all the same people you do, you probably need to rethink some things in your life.  

  And yet while Scripture challenges us, it comforts us, because it's continuously reminding us of the grace of God.  I read that verse about abstaining from every form of evil (wouldn't it be great if the worldwide church focused on that, rather than just cherry-picking particular types of evil and ignoring others?), and I know that I don't do that.  

  But Scripture consoles, too -- the sweetness of the Gospel is that in my weakness, I discover the strength of God, and in doing so, I am restored in my hope, for my future depends on God's generous and gracious love!

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 

English Standard Version 

  If you have ten pizzas, do you worry more about going hungry or who you're going to share pizza with?  In that instance, you're probably thinking about who you can bless with a pizza!  You're thinking of friends with frantic schedules or maybe people who are homebound, and you're dropping off pizzas and hoping they bring some joy or ease to someone's life.  The absolute last thing on your mind is running out of food for yourself.

  Spiritually, you have ten pizzas.  You are a child of light, filled with faith because of the work of the Holy Spirit.  Christ died for you so that you might live with him.  

  Therefore, we read -- we are charged to encourage one another and build one another up.  Our faith should not lead us to anxiety, but rather to turn the eyes of our hearts outwards to think how we can share the incredible joy that is an anchor for our souls, which are often tossed in stormy seas.  May we recognize the abundance of grace poured into our lives and think more of our neighbors than we do of ourselves.  

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

English Standard Version 

  Yesterday morning was a cold one at church -- we're still worshiping in the parking lot, and the wind was a bit more brisk than I expected.  See, I predict the day's weather based on whatever happened yesterday, which works really well if you live in San Diego.  Living in central Ohio means my weather system isn't very reliable.  Maybe I need to move...

  If I can't predict the weather tomorrow, I certainly can't tell you exactly what the end times will be like.  There are scholars who have done countless hours of research on Scripture to have a better understanding of what will happen when Christ returns.  We're all looking at an incomplete picture.  Here, Paul is telling the church that upon Christ's return, the dead will be resurrected first, and then those who are alive who will be caught up together, so that there will be one community meeting the Lord in the air.  If we are to be one community in the end times, we are called to live as one community in the here and now.  

  When will Christ return?  What warnings will there be?  How will we know?

  Those we don't know.  We are called to trust God -- the God who comes to save us has taught us that God is trustworthy, so when we reach the end of our knowledge and look forward into the unknown, we can do so with confidence that God will provide a safe and secure future for us.

1 Thessalonians 3:6-13

1 Thessalonians 3:6-13

English Standard Version 

  If you turn on the news, you hear a lot of outrage these days, some of it justified and rightly aired.  There is a lot of anger floating around out there, and lots of despair.  These are important things for us to hear, and we should listen, for in hearing the cries of the desperate and the hurting and the angry, we often find our mission.

  What's also important for us to share is the good news of our faith.  God is at work in your life -- when you see signs of that, when you see evidence of God's love, share the Good News!  The news that God is at work in your life can be encouragement or comfort to your brothers and sisters in Christ who may be in distress and affliction.  So share Good News, that others may see ways God is at work.

  Caleb had some teeth pulled the other day, an event that led to much nervous anticipation.  Other than some annoyance at the aftereffects of numb lips, it went far, far better than expected.  There are times when we are able to provide comfort to our children, and I give thanks for those times, when assurances can be relied upon, that it deepens the sense of trust, that we learn more about love, and ultimately I have learned more about God's love through my children than I ever thought possible.

1 Thessalonians 3:1-5

1 Thessalonians 3:1-5

English Standard Version

  Paul writes about a lot of suffering in his life -- he did not have an easy life.  And Jesus?  Well, he was literally killed because of what he believed and lived.  Most of the apostles suffered as well, and countless other early Christians died for what they believed.  So let's be extra wary of anyone who promises that believing in Jesus will necessarily make your life easier and materially better.  Christianity gives us tools to cope with suffering and disappointment, and the joy and peace we find in Christ should make our lives better, even if we materially have less because we commit ourselves to serving the community with our gifts.  

  It's a trade off.  When we keep our eyes focused on eternity and the community we have here on earth, we are better able to accept short-term disappointments and the sacrifices we make.  When Paul sends Timothy to exhort the Thessalonians, he's reminding them of the long-term vision, to let the power of the Gospel help them hold steady in the face of the temptation to throw in the towel and look for short-term relief.  

  May we be the type of people who exhort one another, who reach and encourage us to hold fast to our good confession, that the community may be strengthened by our presence in it!

1 Thessalonians 2:17-20

1 Thessalonians 2:17-20

English Standard Version 

  This should be the church today, right?  When we are torn apart, we are separated in person, but not in heart, because our hearts stay with one another and we are endeavoring eagerly to see one another again face to face.  This is the way I hope our congregations care for one another -- that we find our joy in one another.  

  It's interesting to watch the world these days.  Politically, the US is having a hard time working together.  I've gone from wondering if the center can hold to wondering if there even is a center left any more.  The two sides seem to care little for one another, each having done plenty to antagonize the other.  The church used to be a place where you built relationships with people who thought differently than you, but I don't know if that's still true.  

  I keep hoping that the 21st century American church can get back to what Paul is talking about -- that we love one another with such love that we endeavor the more eagerly to see the people in our community -- those that don't think like us, that don't look like us, just as eagerly as we seek those who do.  When Christ pursued us, we were enemies of God, and Christ came to us and loved us with a great love, a selfless love, and redeemed us despite the gulf that separated us.  If Christ can do that for the church, can the church stand in the gap today and love the world, bridging the divide and endeavoring to see one another face to face, to be separated in person but not in heart?

  It's my hope that we can all find a home in the church, surrounded by people who love us with such love, regardless of political persuasion, for we have so much in common.

1 Thessalonians 2:13-16

1 Thessalonians 2:13-16 

English Standard Version 

  I was telling the kids a story last night, and I could make it as silly and ridiculous as I wanted, because it had no authority, no basis -- it was just a story, made up as it went along.

  Scripture, however, is another matter -- we believe that it is the word of God, and it has power and authority.  When we hear the word read and proclaimed, the Holy Spirit turns it into the actual word of God, no matter the ability of the preacher.  The Holy Spirit is at work, and so we are charged to listen for what God has to say to us.  Listening to the word of God carries a responsibility -- because if it is God that is speaking, that word should have an impact, right?  Once you hear God speaking, that should do something to you.  It should move you to act, to change, to obey, to worship. 

  Paul is celebrating the impact the word has had in Thessalonica.  May the word impact us in the same way, that we go out and live as a people of the word, being fed by the word and led by the word!

1 Thessalonians 2:9-12

1 Thessalonians 2:9-12

English Standard Version 

  Being a parent is hard work.  At every interaction, it seems as though there is a choice -- to exhort and encourage, or to scold and correct.  I will confess that for me, it's far, far easier to scold and correct.  It's easier to notice and say something when my child is doing something wrong.  I so terribly often miss the opportunities to praise my children... maybe I take it for granted, maybe I gloss over it.  I don't know.  It's hard.  I want to be an encouraging voice in my children's ear, but it seems like some days all I do is tell my children 'No'.  

  It's easy for the church to do that as well.  In the church, it's easy to look at the world and see all the things that are going wrong in the world.  It's easy to go out and scold the world.  And, if we're honest, the world may well sometimes need a good scolding!  But how can the church be a voice of encouragement, a voice of hope, a voice that points to a future that is rooted in hope?  How can the church go into the world and affirm that people are made in the image of God, and start with the fact that we are all on the same playing field -- none of us can claim superiority over another?  If we start there, then maybe we can find ways to encourage one another and then invite others to come and find the source of our hope, the source of our joy, the Living Water that pours himself out so that others may live!

1 Thessalonians 2:1-8

1 Thessalonians 2:1-8 

English Standard Version 

  I don't think I fully grasped passages like this until I had children of my own.  Jesus talks about how God longs to gather God's people like a mother hen gathers her chicks.  Psalm 131 portrays a soul like a weaned child with its mother.  Watching my children comfort themselves in the arms of my wife, nestling into her to discover a place of safety and love, I realize why Scripture uses this image -- an infant recognizes its mother and finds comfort and security there that is nowhere else in the world.  The same is true of God -- the security we find in God is complete in a way that nothing else in the world can offer.  Our souls can rest in God in a way they cannot rest anywhere else.  God offers unconditional love, and in this love there is joy and there is peace and there is rest.  

  May we rest in God, knowing that there is nothing else that is needed, nothing else to desire, beyond God and God alone.

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

1 Thessalonians 1 

English Standard Version 

  One of the things I love about the church community is that there is almost always someone else that is constantly mentioning you in prayers.  To be in community means  to pray for one another, remembering one another before God.  What a gift that can be from one to another!

  Here, the Thessalonians probably don't realize what an inspiration their faith is -- they're busy serving God, serving one another, focused on what is in front of them.  Maybe they didn't set out to become an example, but they have, and word of their faith is traveling around, as others are inspired by them, learning more about Jesus.

  We often don't realize the wake we leave behind us as we navigate through the world.  We impact others, often through simple acts of love and devotion that we don't give another thought.  Maybe take some time today and reach out to say thank you to those who inspire you, to those who are examples to you, and let them know that you are remembering them in prayer, that we may encourage one another, spurring each other on to love and good works!

Psalm 24

Psalm 24 

English Standard Version 

  A few quick points here.  To begin with, we belong to God.  God made us, and we are God's.  What's amazing is that the Psalmist notes that only those with clean hands and pure hearts can ascend the hill of the Lord.  I could not stand in that group on my own, no matter how vigorously I wash my hands, but God has made a way for us to have clean hands and pure hearts, through the sacrifice of Christ.  You receive blessing and righteousness from God as a free gift, unearned.

  So let us lift up the gates of our hearts, to fling wide the doors we so instinctively shut, that God may come in and dwell with us!

Psalm 4

Psalm 4

English Standard Version 

Answer Me When I Call 

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. 

A Psalm of David. 

  If you're anything like me, emotions range in the course of a day or a week.  We go from elated to concerned to peaceful to stressed and back again.  At times you're resting peacefully & content, at other times your mind is racing with the things you need to do.  It can feel like we're a craft on a sea, tossed by the waves.  

  The Psalms range as well.  They're beautiful in how they reflect real life, and through it all we see God's consistent involvement, never straying far from us.  Here, the Psalmist notes that true joy, lasting joy, comes from God alone -- everything else will fade.  We realize this at times, in our wisdom, when we see how the rich and famous have struggles as well -- money doesn't solve problems.  We like to fool ourselves and think that it will, and it does solve some problems, but to lie down at night and sleep in peace?  Money cannot buy that.  Rich foods and fine wine cannot provide that.  God can provide that, for true safety comes from God.  There is nothing that can tear us from the arms of God, and that truth can give us the peace we need to lie down and find true rest.

Ruth 4:7-17

Ruth 4:7-17 

English Standard Version 

  There was a time when Ruth's life didn't look very promising -- she was a widow who left everything she knew to follow her mother-in-law to a strange land with a strange new God.  There, she found herself gleaning in the fields, wondering what would become of her... 

  And now Ruth is David's great-grandmother, if I'm doing the math right.  A foreigner, in a foreign land, who is in the lineage of the greatest king of Israel.  Not what she would have expected, but God could see farther than she could.

  The same is true for each of us.  God can see farther than we can.  There are times when our life doesn't look very promising, when we are filled with despair and disappointment.  There are times when we feel like there is no hope.  The joy of Easter, the Good News of the Gospel, is that even when we stare into the maw of death, when we feel defeated, there is yet life in God, there is yet joy in God, there is hope for tomorrow and hope for eternity.  You are loved, and nothing can take that from you, and because of the love with which you are loved, you are assured of eternal life in the arms of God.

Ruth 4:1-6

Ruth 4:1-6 

English Standard Version 

  We don't know the reason the relative of Naomi declines to take responsibility for Ruth.  There are cultural practices where relatives would marry the widow of their brother and have children by the widow, ensuring that the brother's lineage carried on.  In this case, the relative declines, likely having something to do with Ruth being a Moabite, a foreigner.  The man doesn't want this responsibility.

  God, however, looks to include.  It starts here in the Old Testament, but Jesus is teaching the same thing in the New Testament -- that God will gather people from the north and south and east and west.  The genealogy of Jesus is remarkable in that Ruth is included in it, despite her status as a foreigner!  God is at work in and through her, and her demonstration of faithfulness to Naomi lives on to this day.

  May the church have the same Holy Spirit guided heart to look for ways God is at work in every corner of this world.  May we be careful not to exclude, ready for the continually surprising ways God expands the Kingdom, day by day.

Ruth 3:10-18

Ruth 3:10-18 

English Standard Version 

  In the story of Ruth, the blessings of the Lord flow to Ruth and Naomi through Boaz.  Boaz protects Ruth reputation here, while also providing ample barley for Naomi.  Boaz is a channel through which blessings flow to others.

  On Easter, we celebrated the gift of the resurrection and the hope we have in Christ.  Our sin no longer determines our fate, and so we can be certain that our true treasure is secure in Christ.  

  Our responsibility, therefore, is to be a channel of blessings to others.  Just as Boaz looked out for others as a way to bless them, we're called to look out for those in our midst, be they immigrants or widows as they are here, or whomever we meet.  Grounded in the confidence that we have been claimed as Christ's own, may we boldly serve and channel the blessing we've received into the lives of others.

Mark 15:21-39

Mark 15:21-39 

English Standard Version 

  I was listening to a sermon the other day that was linking this to John 4, the woman at the well.  Jesus is telling her that if she drinks the water from the well, she'll thirst again.  But if she drinks from the water that Jesus gives, she'll never thirst again.  Here, Jesus, in his final moments, rejects the earthly wine that is offered him here, for he is the living water, offering himself for the thirst of all people.

  Good Friday is when we remember, when we mourn, when we hope.  On this side of Good Friday, we know how the story ends, but it still comes at great cost. 

  Never forget that God pays that price willingly to redeem you, to save you, because God loves you.  May that thought stay with you on Good Friday, through Holy Saturday, and into the joyous celebration of Easter.

Ruth 3:1-9

Ruth 3:1-9 

English Standard Version 

  "All that you say I will do."

  This is the response that our hearts cry to Jesus.  We believe that God created us, and we believe that God designed us to live in community, and so we know that obeying God is the best way to live in community with one another, honoring God in all we do.  

  And yet, we sin, right?  Over and over again.  We trip over our own efforts and we we trip because we're not paying attention to one another and we trip because we're trying to walk through a room in the middle of the night and we bang our shins into the coffee table.  We are imperfect, and we sin.

  

  On this Maundy Thursday, I pray you'll take a moment and realize the miracle of a Jesus who sat down at the table with a group of disciples who said they would do everything Jesus commanded, and yet by the end of the night, they would have all abandoned him and one would have betrayed them.  And yet he comes to them, and dies for them, just as he comes to you, and saves you by dying for you.

  And so our hearts cry out that we will do as Christ says, for such love we have seen, such love we have witnessed, and such love we daily experience in the depths of our hearts, that we long to follow Christ, our redeemer.